Regina Rathnau Lairson Michael Zink President Secretary

Michele (Stack) Hendrickson Kristen Kozlowski First Vice President Treasurer

Alexander Z. Fiedotjew Matthew A. Sidor Second Vice President Historian

L. Steven Rakowski Third Vice President The Advocate Official Newsletter of the Advocates Society, ,

November 2012 Issue

Advocates Scholarship Fundraiser

The annual scholarship fundraiser will be hosted Friday, November 9, 2012 at The Parthenon Restaurant located at 314 S. Halsted, Chicago, IL 60661, (312) 726-2407. The fundraiser will offer a silent auction and the proceeds will benefit the NEW Advocates scholarship fund for law students of Polish descent. Alex Fiedotjew is still accepting silent auction items until the night of the event, so please contact him at (773) 286-8275, or [email protected] with items you would like to donate (e.g., tickets to events, gift certificates, books, bottles of wine, etc.). Solicitation letters for donations will be mailed shortly. Please think about potential donations. Cost will be $100.00 per person, and includes an open bar and free valet parking. Please RSVP with Alex Fiedotjew at (773) 286-8275, or [email protected]. A great night will be enjoyed by all!

Holiday Meeting, Friday, December 21, 2012, 7:00 p.m.

The Holiday meeting of the Advocates Society will be on Friday, December 21, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. at the Copernicus Foundation. The Foundation is located at 5216 West Lawrence Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, one block west of the Kennedy Expressway, one block east of Milwaukee Avenue, and one block southeast of the Jefferson Park CTA station. Remember that there is free parking at the Copernicus lot. After the meeting there will be a delicious buffet supper from Kasia’s Polish Deli. If you plan to attend, please call Michele Hendrickson at (847) 823-5517 or e-mail [email protected] and leave a message so that we know how much food to order. Santa and his Elf will be joining us! If you are planning on bringing your children, please send us an e-mail to [email protected] letting us know the name and ages of the children by December 14, 2012.

Judges’ Night,

The Annual Judges’ Night was held on October 17, 2012 at the Polish Museum of America, 984 N. Milwaukee Ave., Chicago, IL. Below pictured is President Regina Rathnau, and First Vice President Michele Hendrickson. A great night was had by all!

New Members

The Advocates Society is pleased to announce that TIMOTHY H. JAGIELSKI and ALLAN R. STASCIA have applied for membership. Their applications have been approved by the Board and will be presented to the membership at the December general meeting (due to October’s Judges Night and November’s fundraiser to which they are welcome to attend). We look forward to welcoming them to our organization.

Advocates Society Annual Blackhawks Outing!!!

The Advocates Society is organizing a group outing to a Chicago Blackhawks hockey game vs. the Calgary Flames. The event will take place on Sunday, December 16th at 6:00 p.m. Tickets are located in the club level. The cost is $120.00 per person. Please contact Maureen Pikarski at [email protected]. Please note that there is a potential NHL lockout for the upcoming season. Shall the purchased tickets be changed to a new date, the Advocates will be bumped as a group to a new date in 2013.

Elder Law Forum

Are you interested in Elder Law? The Advocates has been presented with an opportunity to join forces with Judge Patricia Banks, presiding judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County Elder Law Division to create an Elder Law Forum targeting the Polish ethnic community. The Copernicus Center will be the location for the event. The goal of the event would be to allow seniors to gain information at one time from a variety of organizations that are able to help seniors. If you are interested helping create and lead the event, email us at [email protected].

Advocates Members Elected to the Bench!

Advocates Society members Diann Marsalek (Circuit Count of Cook County), Andrea Schleifer (12th Subcircuit of Cook County), were recently elected to the bench in the November 6th election. Members Ron Barkowicz and Paul Karkula also won retention on the Cook County bench. Congratulations to our members! We are proud of you!

Congratulations New Bar Members!

Advocates Society President, Regina Rathnau, photographed above with the Illinois Supreme Court Justices Burke, Freeman and Theis along with several bar association presidents attended the November ceremony to swear in new members of the Illinois Bar. Congratulations to all new members!

Our Website is Getting a Makeover

Our current website at www.advocatesociety.com is being redesigned to be more informative and present a better public image of our group. Stay tuned for details on its new launching!

Congratulations Scholarship Award Winners

Adovcates Society President, Regina Rathnau, and Scholarship Chairperson, Ann Melichar, are photographed with the annual scholarship award winners, Arthur Gotfryd, Katherine Lech and Klaudia Kazmierski. Over $6,000 was awarded, including an honorary scholarship to Katherine Lech in memory of Judge Paul Stralka. Congratulations to the students!

New Home for Advocates! The Advocates finally has a permanent home. The new Advocates Society office will be at the new Copernicus Center Annex located at 5214 West Lawrence, Chicago, Illinois 60630. Mail can still be sent to the PO box for now, but this address will become the mailing address for Advocates. We are excited to have a home for our records and a place for board meetings and other tasks!

ADVOCATES SOCIETY Regina Rathnau Lairson, President 5214 West Lawrence 39 S. LaSalle Street #200 Chicago, Illinois 60630 Chicago, Illinois 60640 Website: www.ADVOCATESOCIETY.com 312-659-2953 Email: [email protected]

2012-13 Calendar of Advocates Society Events

If you have a potential newsletter item, please forward it to Kathy Wantuch, Hiltz & Wantuch LLC, 53 West Jackson Blvd., Suite 205, Chicago, Illinois 60604, or contact her at [email protected].

November 9, 2012 Friday Annual Fundraiser December 7, 2012 Friday Board of Governors’ Meeting December 21, 2012 Friday General Meeting at the Copernicus Center 5216 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago January 11, 2013 Friday Board of Governors’ Meeting January 25, 2013 Friday General Meeting at the Copernicus Center 5216 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago February 6, 2013 Wednesday Installation Dinner – Drake Hotel

Amicus Poloniae Legal Clinic 5711 N. Milwaukee, Chicago, IL Saturday, November 17, 2012 Saturday, December 15, 2012